Rats in the Kitchen
by LaylaBinx
Summary: Apparently Riley sleep walks...and talks. Silliness ensues! BenXRiley friendship :D


**Hehe, okay I'm not entirely sure where this idea came from but it just popped in my head and begged to be written. I don't know if anyone has ever dealt with sleepwalkers but they're a trip D Most of this comes from my best friend because she's notorious for sleep walking so if it sounds weird...it is XD Hope you like!!**

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Abigail blinked as the glowing red numbers changed once again. She drummed her fingers on the pillow lightly, weighing her options for a few seconds before finally rolling over and shaking the man next to her. 

"Ben."

There was an incoherent response followed by something that sounded distinctly like, "Huh?"

"Go get your friend out of the kitchen."

"…What?"

"Riley. He's been talking to the refrigerator for the past thirty-five minutes. Go get him or I'm going to smother him with a pillow." The irritation in Abigail's voice was palpable but there was also a hint of worry on its edge. This was the third night in a row that Riley had started up with his sleepwalking routine again and now he'd started _talking_ as well. They both knew that it only happened when he became stressed or upset but he would never tell either of them what was wrong. That was just the kind of person Riley was; he'd whine and complain about little things all day but the minutes something was really wrong with him he'd keep it bottled up inside.

Ben sighed and looked at the clock, squinting hard to see the numbers. "God, Riley…" he muttered out loud, pushing the blankets back and standing up. He slipped a sweatshirt over his head and opened the bedroom door, walking down the hall to the kitchen.

The man in question was standing in front of the refrigerator, his back to the older man. He was currently engaged in rearranging all of the magnets on the refrigerator door, mumbling quietly to himself as he did so. Nestled in the crook of his arm were a broom and an empty jar that had once contained Kool-aid mix. Ben walked in quietly, taking a seat on the other side of the island that divided their kitchen.

"Riley, what are you doing?" he asked gently, knowing better than to try and wake the sleeping man up. A busted lip and black eye had taught him that lesson once before.

"Ben!" Riley exclaimed, turning halfway around and going right back to what he was doing. "Thank God you're here! Quick, I need the code."

"Code? What code?"

"The code!" the younger exclaimed in a sleepy voice. "The code…I need the code or they'll get in…"

"Who?"

"The rats."

Ben stopped for a second and thought about where this conversation was headed. As a responsible adult, he knew he needed to get Riley to bed and back to sleep but as a friend whose best friend was talking about rats and codes he was curious to see what was going to come out of this situation.

"Ben…the code…"

Riley's voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he looked up again. "Riley, I don't know the code…"

"Yes you do." He insisted firmly. "You were the one who told me about the treasure in the basement and that if it came down to it we'd have to get rid of the refrigerator because once the code was implanted it would know too much…"

The treasure hunter felt a twinge of guilt deep in his stomach. He was always asking Riley to crack codes or hack into computer systems it seemed that it had finally seeped into his subconscious. It made him realize how much he asked Riley to do on a regular basis and how little the younger man ever protested to any crazy idea or scheme he'd come up with. Sometimes he liked it better when Riley would just sleep walk.

"Riley, we don't have a basement."

"Ah…but you will..."

Ignoring whatever that was supposed to mean, Ben stood slowly and walked over, placing a gentle hand on Riley's shoulder. "Riley…"

"Ben! The Code!"

Sighing heavily, Ben closed his eyes and leaned against the counter. "Hell Riley, I don't know…"

"It's something unusual…something…weeiirrd…" The last word was drawn out as the younger man yawned, his attention still fixated on the magnets.

"Weird, huh? God, I don't know….uh…bacon."

Riley's vacant eyes suddenly widened slightly and he nodded enthusiastically. "Of course…it makes perfect sense now!" He moved a few more magnets and pulled on the door, the refrigerator opening with a soft groan. Riley reached inside, grabbed a head of lettuce and turned around.

"Okay, and what do you plan on doing with that?" Ben asked, a smile tugging at his mouth as Riley clutched the lettuce like a football. The younger man swayed slightly as another yawn was pulled from him.

"It's a grenade."

"Of course it is. Come on." Wrapping a gentle arm around his best friend's shoulders, Ben led him away from the kitchen and back into the back bedroom. He pulled the blankets back onto the bed (Riley was a violent sleeper) and folded them back, gently pushing Riley onto the mattress. He pulled off the one tennis shoe he'd managed put on and helped him out of the jacket he had on backwards. Riley sat still and let Ben partially undress him, his eyes distant and empty in the clutches of sleep.

"Okay, kiddo. Time for bed." Ben said, pushing him back into the pillows and tucking the blankets around him. He plucked the lettuce that had been held hostage from Riley's hands and placed it on the table. After he was satisfied Riley was sufficiently tucked in, he turned to the door and looked back over his shoulder. "Sleep well, partner."

"Ben wait…" Riley called softly, sitting up a little. "What if they come back?"

Frowning, Ben turned back and looked at his friend. "Who?"

"The police…they were after us last time. They almost got you and Abi…"

Ben felt his shoulders slump and he walked back over to the bed, sitting down next to Riley. "Don't worry about that, both Abigail and I are safe and there's no one after us. I promise."

Riley nodded slowly, resting his head on the older man's shoulder and sighing. "Good…you know they're in league with Captain Crunch and the leprechaun with the marshmallows…"

The last comments caused Ben to laugh out loud and he covered his mouth with his hand once he noticed Riley had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He smiled and wrapped an arm the young man's shoulders, leaning back against the headboard and taking a slow breath.

Abigail appeared in the doorway, a small smile resting on her face. "Is he asleep?" she asked quietly, nodding at Riley.

"Yeah, finally." Ben whispered, resting his friend back on the bed and tucking him in again. Quietly, he stepped outside and closed the bedroom door. "He was talking about a code and rats and he grabbed some lettuce that he thought was a grenade." Ben chuckled and shrugged. "Weird kid."

Abi smiled and rubbed his arm. "Maybe we should give him a break sometimes instead of always using him for our benefit."

"Yeah, you're right…as usual." Ben smiled and kissed her on the forehead. "But the next time he wakes me up at 3 in the morning I'm going to duct tape him to a dresser."

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**Yay! I know I didn't go into much detail about what's bothering Riley but the simple fact is he's just stressed and tends to acts a little stranger than normal when that happens. [grin Some of this is a little off becuase I know most of the time a sleep walker can't recognize who they're talking to but I changed it a little for the story. Let me know what you think!!**


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